Oh good. I love purple and b&w too. Not sure how dark you are considering, but I once painted my 15x9 office a medium-dark purple (inspired by a magazine photo of an elegant dining room). As I was painting around the narrow end of the room the walls began to feel like they were moving in on m It was horrible! So back to the paint store for a lavender that hinted at periwinkle. So one option is lavender paint on top and dark purple rugs. FWIW, Kelly Moore lets you order 8x10 color samples, but you need to get the special form to fax in and then they mail them to you. I wonder if other companies do that too. ??? Good luck. Can't wait to see it.

Hi Claire, thanks for thinking about my layout issue, and thanks also for the feedback! Yes, I am using sketchup. What program did you use to draw on my jpg? I wouldn't necessarily mind turning that staircase if the benefits outweigh the drawbracks, but I'm not sure what I would do with the rest of the layout, and I would also have to turn the basement stairs (there is a half staircase from the garage to the basement directly underneath the stairs currently in the living room) and the headroom for the new stair orientation would have to come from an upstairs closet (there is a bedroom above most of the current living & dining rooms). Also, the length of the wall where you wrote "open" is only 3' 1" (from the beginning of the stairs to the dining room wall). Our upstairs hallway is 3' wide and it seems very narrow.

I agree with others who pointed out your bath pictures show clean, neutral, and functional already. And that it's a great idea to live in the space a little while before investing in any changes. A coat of paint, a new faucet, and a new light will - seriously - work wonders. But you also asked some specific questions, so here goes. :-) 1. For software, personally I liked Homestyler for a while, but then they rebranded it as Planner 5D and started upcharging for just about everything. Then later, a different company started hosting a different Homestyler that I like a lot. But keep in mind, these are free (unless you opt to shell out for the upgraded tools), so be careful how much info you share. If you want to go high tech, Sketchup is a fantastic 3D drawing tool, with lots of plugins for furniture and fixtures... but the learning curve is STEEP. You're smart to invest in tools carefully... but you may not need anything carpentry-related for your baths just yet. Miter saws are great if you have a ton of crown to install, but I don't expect you'll be building your own cabs or doors, right? DH and I bought a hand-held circular saw 20 years ago, and it's still our main saw. There are ways to set up portable workspaces on sawhorses, and use a straightedge with clamps to get clean, straight cuts. But if you have real cutting to do and space for storage, a table saw is great. Don't overlook the value of a great cordless drill, high quality bits, good wrenches, and 2 measuring tapes in good condition. Hardware and lights... the internet is flooded. But there's a fun way to find new sources. Find something you like on Amazon or Lowes, then google that item and see what other stores pop up. They may be design centers, hardware stores, specialty shops, or other major retailers you just never knew of. Bathroom fans are frustrating to buy. The ones that work best look the worst. Go for specs, not looks, and make sure there are nicer things in your bathrooms to look at. 5a. I would not paint or resurface a bathroom counter. But if they're really that bad, you can buy inexpensive pre-formed counters at HD/Lowes for very cheap. You should look at Ikea too, but their sizes often don't work with preexisting cabinets. Another option (but probably isn't worth it) - small counters are easy to replace with a stone remnant from a stone yard. It will still cost something - more than HD/Lowes. But if the full bath redo is years away, this is a nice upgrade. 5b. From your pics, your floors look like they're in good shape and clean, but I couldn't see much of the floor... I will say - if the tile is original, removing it will be a nightmare. You will need a hammer drill, heavy wire cutters, strong backs, and a chiropractor. Tile setters in the 60s took their work very seriously - there is probably 2" of mortar under that tile, with some crazy chicken wire type stuff embedded in it. A hammer and chisel is not going to cut it. We pulled the tile out of our powder room a couple years ago - our house was built in 1989 and clearly, the tile setter was old-school. They didn't mess around. We put down 1000 feet of peel & stick wood look plank in our basement 5 years ago. I actually love it. It was cheap stuff from Lowes, and it looks like we paid much more. BUT. The concrete floor was very flat and smooth, and already sealed. We applied a primer, and that makes all the difference with adhesive floors. We do have a couple areas that have been exposed to water (washer leak and a Bilco door leak), but those were isolated events... I'm not sure P&S is a great idea in a bathroom. But it could be a reasonable solution for a short term replacement of the tile. Note - if you pull up the tile, and put down a skinny layer of P&S - you may have work to do to replace the toilet. The bolts may not fit properly, the wax seal may not seat the same. Questions you didn't ask, but I'll offer some thoughts anyway :-) If you're thinking to replace doors with Shaker style, there are some great companies who sell custom doors for reasonable prices. The kitchen forum is the place to look for the current favorites. And I know the beige fixtures are not so popular, but don't try painting them. The yellow I see in your pics will not work well with that dingy beige I'm imagining. But there are other nice colors that will complement the beige and make it tolerable - Maria Killam is a good source to explore colors and see if you can make that beige work in the short term. Congratulations on your first home! Have fun decorating!

@michiganmama: I just used BM Beacon Gray paint but that might be a little bit too blue for you. Take a look at BM Silver Mist, BM First Snowfall, and maybe BM Marilyn’s Dress. If you search these colors on the Benjamin Moore site you can click the options for shades and similar colors. Maybe thia will help narrow things down before you go to the paint store for chips or samples. I am seeing the sink as more teal than gray/blue, so my focus is on the floor where I see gray. If you decide to change the sink, go for an undermount white. Regarding the vents, I took them down, lightly sanded, got them really clean, and spray painted (metal paint from Lowe’s). Hope that helps!